Burqa City vs Laapataa Ladies originality battle: Director Fabrice Bracq says he is surprised and shocked

The makers of Laapataa Ladies were recently accused of copying the film from a 2019 Arabic short movie called Burqa City. A social media user shared videos comparing both films, which quickly went viral.

While the writer of Laapataa Ladies denied the claims, the director of Burqa City, Fabrice Bracq, said he was shocked after watching the clips. Fabrice Bracq said he was shocked after watching Laapataa Ladies. He felt that even though the film was made for an Indian audience, some parts reminded him a lot of his own short film Burqa City. He didn’t expect to see so many familiar things in it.

While speaking to India Today, he said, "Notably - and this is by no means an exhaustive list - the kind, loving, naive husband who loses his wife, contrasted with the other husband who is violent and despicable. The scene with the police officer is also striking: a corrupt, violent, and intimidating policeman surrounded by two sidekicks. Of course, there's the moment with the photo of the veiled woman."

The director also mentioned a particular scene in Laapataa Ladies where the husband is looking for his wife in different shops. He pointed out the part where the man shows a photo of his wife, who is wearing a veil, to shopkeepers. Then, the shopkeeper’s own burqa-clad wife comes out. He felt this moment was very close to a scene in Burqa City and seemed like a clear reference to his film.

He also mentioned that the twist at the end of Laapataa Ladies felt very familiar. In the film, it’s revealed that the woman ran away on purpose to escape her abusive husband. He said this was a major part of the story in Burqa City as well.

Meanwhile, in a statement posted on his Instagram page, Laapata Ladies write Biplab Goswami said the allegations are "completely untrue". "Our story, characters, and dialogues are 100% original. Any allegations of plagiarism are completely untrue. These allegations not just undermine my efforts as a writer, but also the tireless efforts of the entire filmmaking team," he said. 

Goswami also stated the screenplay for Laapataa Ladies, which released in theatres in March 2024 and was later selected as India's official entry to 2025 Oscars, was developed extensively over many years. "I first registered the film's detailed synopsis, outlining the entire story with the working title 'Two Brides', with the Screenwriters Association on July 3, 2014. Even within this registered synopsis, there is a scene that clearly describes the groom bringing home the wrong bride and being shocked and stricken upon realising his mistake because of the veil, along with the rest of his family. This is where the story takes off. I had also clearly written about the scene of the worried groom going to the police station and showing the only photograph he had of his missing bride to the police officer, but the bride's face was covered with a veil, resulting in a comedic moment," he wrote. 

The writer added that he registered the feature-length script of 'Two Brides' with the SWA in June 2018. "This script won the runner-up award at the Cinestaan Storytellers Competition in 2018. Again, in this screenplay, I had the scene of the policeman amused by the photograph of the veiled bride," he added.